Policy Statement
Impact Renewable Energy Ltd’s vision is:
- Providing excellent and equal services
- Acting with integrity
- Valuing People and their values
This policy outlines Impact Renewable Energy Ltd approach to dealing with the support of vulnerable customers and customers with language difficulties effectively and in line with our core values.
We are committed to treating people as individuals, enabling them to make their own choices and decisions about what services they want, respecting their preferences and wishes, tailoring services to meet their requirements. We also recognise that individual needs may change over time and that our services should be adaptable to change.
We recognise that customers with special needs and customers with language difficulties should have a range of support options open to them.
Compliance
This policy meets the requirements of the Renewable energy Assurance and Office of Fair Trading whereby we must “co-operate to identify and meet the needs of vulnerable people and customers with language difficulties”. This reinforces the importance of good quality and affordable services.
Customers must be offered choices over the services they can receive, and be treated with fairness and respect. In relation to all the standards, Impact Renewable Energy Ltd must consider equality issues and the diversity of their customers, including customers with additional support needs.
Policy Purpose and Aims
The needs of the differing vulnerable groups and of individuals will vary regarding the delivery of services to ensure equality of provision. The following are areas of services that will be considered when looking at commitment to our vulnerable customers. Each area is considered in turn below:
- Customer Involvement
- Accessing our services
- The right support in attendance during meetings and installations assistance to obtain additional services
Customer Involvement
One of our primary commitments to vulnerable customers and customers with language difficulties is to work with them in finding effective ways of giving them a voice in designing and planning their system.
Impact Renewable Energy Ltd has a customer involvement strategy that sets out our commitment to provide a wide range of accessible opportunities for customers to become involved and influence the service we provide to similar others. However we recognize that there is often an extra challenge in involving vulnerable customers and customers with language difficulties effectively. We will therefore continue to develop new models of involvement and are particularly committed to effectively involving customers of short term services, seeking ways to hear their ‘voice’ through a variety of involvement options.
As well as working with our customers, we will work with other providers across our areas of operation, particularly those with specialist knowledge and experience of working with vulnerable people, to develop our range of activities which offer customers opportunities to become involved in shaping services and monitoring quality.
We will ensure that our “Partner Associations” are committed to providing a good quality and effective service to all of its customers and the following our policy commitments.
Customers with special needs and customers with language difficulties will always be treated with dignity, respect and sensitivity and in a non-judgemental and non patronising manner.
We train all our staff in equality and diversity issues to enable appropriate customer care and service delivery to be provided to vulnerable people.
Appropriate arrangements will be made for communicating with customers who have learning or language difficulties through third parties, advocates or families. Arrangement can be made for signers or interpreters to be present at interviews with customers who have hearing difficulties, or for whom English is not their first language.
We will provide guidance and support, where requested, to support the completion of any forms. Written communications to customers with special needs will be clear, concise and simple and in everyday language in accordance with the Plain English Campaign’s guidelines. All our printed literature will be available in large print, on audiotape and can be translated into Braille.
Customers who need help to understand leaflets and complete forms such as application forms will be identified and assisted.
Impact Renewable Energy Ltd will be sensitive to the needs of customers and will, where possible and necessary, use contractors with appropriate experience of working with specific groups.
Complaints
Impact Renewable Energy Ltd will treat all complaints of poor service seriously. Any complaint received by a customer with special needs and customers with language difficulties or their carer, advocate, interpreter or family will be dealt with in accordance with the policy on Complaints.
Confidentiality
Impact Renewables Ltd will treat all personal information regarding customers with special needs and customers with language difficulties as strictly confidential.
Equality Impact Assessment
We will ensure that our services reflect the diverse communities that we work with and are in line with our policies on equality and diversity.
Impact Renewable Energy Ltd will carry out Equality Impact Assessments to understand the impact that our policies may have on groups of people or individuals. These impacts may be positive or negative. We will review our policy with partner and employees from within this area of the business and also with a Disability Equality Group.
Monitoring and Review
This policy was approved in April 2021 and is due for review two years thereafter.
Responsibility
This effective implementation of this policy is the responsibility of the Director of Sales.